The so-called Industry 4.0 is a division based on different stages of industrial development. According to consensus, Industry 1.0 is the age of steam engine, Industry 2.0 is the age of electrification, Industry 3.0 is the age of information, and Industry 4.0 is the age of using information technology to promote industrial change, that is, the age of intelligence.

This concept first appeared in Germany. It was officially launched at the Hanover Industrial Expo in 2013. Its core purpose is to improve the competitiveness of German industry and take the lead in a new round of industrial revolution. Subsequently, the German government was included in one of the ten future projects proposed in the German 2020 High Technology Strategy. The project is jointly funded by the German Federal Bureau of Education, the Research Department and the Federal Ministry of Economy and Technology, with an estimated investment of 200 million euros. It aims to improve the intelligent level of manufacturing industry, establish a smart factory with adaptability, resource efficiency and genetic engineering, and integrate customers and business partners in business processes and value processes. Its technical basis is the network entity system and the Internet of Things.